Holiday Inn Express & Suites Sheldon, an IHG Hotel — Hotel in Sheldon

It was my first time here. We went to go sit in the hot tub and swim We called in advance to make sure it was open to the public and it was. It was my daughter and her friend and her little baby. When we arrived we each paid $5 for an hour which we had no problem with. We signed a paper with our check-in time and we went to the swimming area No rules or regulations were read to us. There were no towels available in the swim area so we went to the front desk to ask for some She refused to give us any and said only hotel guests are allowed towels. I said we paid $5 you don't have the common courtesy to provide us at least one towel for us to share we don't have any towels or anything it was freezing outside and we didnt wanna be half wet when we left plus we had A baby with us not sure how we were supposed to dry off to put on our dry clothes. She said it's not our policy to provide towels It's only supplied for people who stay with us. I said I understand that but I wasn't aware of that otherwise we would have brought our own towels. you can't have common courtesy and provide us a towel for this time. No rules are rules. I said well okay then and I shook my head and walked away. I understand rules are rules but it's a towel We had four people and I only asked for one towel and I was polite about it I didn't make a fuss or anything. We also sat in the hot tub in dim lighting, which we weren't fussy about but someone else could be. We couldn't find a light switch so I'm assuming the lights were supposed to be turned on by the staff. I'm not sure Since it was our first time there. I was very impressed with how large the swimming pool was and the little kid pool area. not to mention the hot tub was quite large, bathrooms were nice also. Next time I won't assume a hotel provides towels when u go swimming at there...

Cons: The west door was a clearly marked exit but the door was locked. We tried to get out of it a few times since our room was near the stairs and our vehicle was parked right outside of that door. The room smelled damp when we arrived. We had to change clothes and head to an outing, so we talked about it briefly and left. Later that night, when we got into the bed, the bedding felt damp. Then we noticed our socks felt damp. We switched the AC to the fan setting. We're wondering if the carpet was shampooed and wasn't dry when we were given the room. ?? And the bed was very soft. That needs an upgrade, for sure. The hot tub & kiddie pool were closed. (No biggie. And this was well marked) We like the pool best anyway, BUT the pool was too cold to swim in. We checked the temp and it was 72 degrees! Families would come in and feel it and leave. One family told us that this was their second stay there & the pool was too cold to swim in both times. On our last stay here the pool was closed, but we came in later at night & should've been sleeping instead of swimming anyway, so I didn't review that issue. Pros: The pillows were great, with one firm and one soft one each. The breakfast bar was fully stocked & kept clean by 2 nice ladies working it. The property was well lit at night. Even with the construction going on there. We didn't hear any noise from the hall or stairs, even being right next to the stairway. Great selection of tv channels. Great response to our request for more shampoo. Conclusion: We won't stay at this property again. We'll pay more and stay at the new local casino hotel. We appreciate swimming enough to pay the difference...

Check-in - no one at the front desk and it took around 3-4 minutes for anyone to show up from the back.||||Room was nice. Looked like possibly a fairly recent renovation on the rooms (front lobby is currently going through with one)??? Big crack in tub wall that was poorly fixed. A strange thing...not bad....just strange...cold water took a while to run. It came out anywhere from warm to hot...typically the other way around.||||Check-out. - bad.||Got my receipt under the door and still showed balance due (this has to be one of the only HIE's to still do it this way). So, went down to take bags to car and asked for a zero balance receipt. All good. Asked the dark haired female working the desk (Feb 12) about the 500 points for A Greener Stay promotion. She informed me that I had to stay at least 3 days in order to get it (I stayed 2). I said ok, but it was strange since I have always received it from every other HIE. She then tells me if I read the door tag, it states it clearly (in a condescending tone). I again told her that's fine, but other hotels have even given it to me on a nightly basis so I was just used to receiving the points. As I walked away, she said something very sarcastic behind my back. Obviously she shouldn't be working a customer service position.||||My room was overlooking the front and you could hear every conversation that was going on outside the...